The former lawmaker resigned from the House of Representatives in 2011, after salacious photos of him emerged online. Two years later, after Weiner had announced that he was running for New York City mayor, screenshots of sexually explicit messages exchanged by Weiner surfaced as well.

He eventually dropped out of the mayoral race.

In October 2016, less than two weeks before the presidential election, former FBI Director James Comey announced that the bureau was reopening its case into Clinton's use of a private email server, because the FBI had uncovered potentially sensitive emails on Weiner's laptop, while investigating his online behavior.

Clinton was never charged as a result of the email investigation, but she has suggested that Comey's decision to reopen the investigation may have contributed to her electoral loss in November.